Guarding Liberty

When my daughter was 6 years old, she became the youngest member of the National Patriot Guard Riders. (I will save that story for another day.) Last Saturday, we had the opportunity to go to the Salt Lake International Airport and honor WWII veterans who were coming home from the Utah Honor Flight. These are men that came home after the war without fanfare. 70 years later, they received it. 

That day was a very wet, cold, and rainy one. We met the Utah Guard at the nearby State Fair Grounds for our planning meeting. While the adults gathered, the children entertained themselves.(She wants a motorcycle so badly!)

Because of the whether, the flight had been delayed by three hours. It was dinner time, so many of us decided to go to a nearby restaurant and grab a bite to eat. My daughter got on a high and got really, really silly with some of her "crew".

When we got to the airport later that evening, we took our places with the flags. 

Missy B stood next to her new friend ready to honor the Great Men of our country. 

Because all of these 40 or so gentlemen were all in wheelchairs, it took another hour before they arrived at our location. 30 minutes prior to their arrival, the girls started getting extremely tired. It was nearly 10pm and they were tired and cold. I took them just inside the entryway of the airport where I encouraged them to lie down and place their heads on my lap. I rubbed their backs and sang quietly to them. 

Just as these girls were relaxed and ready to doze, I look over to see dozens of elderly gentlemen being wheeled down the corridor by their escorts. Nudging the girls I told them, "Girls, look! This is it! This is what you have been waiting all day for!" I pointed towards the crowd coming towards us. I said to them, "Girls, I know you're tired and cold, but let's go get our flags ready and show these men how grateful you are for their service. Shine your smiles at them and show the your gratitude! You can do this!" Missy B's young friend cried that her legs hurt and I offered for her to stand with her mother, also a rider holding a flag. No, she wanted to be with her pal. The three of us went to our designated area and got our flags. 

The girls took their flags and got ready. I told my daughter, "B, you think of your great-grandpa Berry (my maternal grandfather, still living) and you think of our great-uncle Dale (his brother who has passed away). Some of these men may have served with them. You take all your love for Grandpa and Uncle Dale and you give it to these men. Show them you love them and let them know how grateful you are for their service, for giving us our freedom!" Missy B's tender heart broke as she misses her Uncle Dale greatly. She had a special bond with him. As I dried her tears and hugged her, she put on her "warrior face" and prepared to greet these great heroes of our nation.

One by one, these gentlemen were wheeled past us. As they came by the girls, these precious young ladies stood tall to salute every one of them. Then, they reached out their hands to shake the hands of heroes and said, "Thank you for your service." One by one, these frail men broke down in tears, taking those small hands in theirs. As they passed by me, I would bend down to them, taking their hand and thanked them. Some of them broke down weeping thanking us for the honor we gave them that night. Some of them wept so hard that I hugged them and kissed their beautiful, wrinkly cheeks. Our hands clasped those that were missing fingers, crippled with arthritis, or had major burn damage. It literally pained them to shake our hands, but they did it anyway, because it connected us as human beings. 

Afterward, the men were bused to the Fair Grounds where a big ceremony was held in their honor. Missy B needed to get home, since it was after 11:30 pm by this point, but I know they were adored by the hundreds of people waiting for them.

Being there to honor our Defenders of Liberty was one of the highlights of my life. It was a sacred experience as we paid our respects to these incredible men, who sacrificed so much for our freedoms. I am grateful to know the Utah Patriot Guard and have my daughter be an official member. It brings tears to my eyes that we are able to show our love to the true heroes of liberty. God bless our military. We salute you. 

Guarding Liberty-

Mama Dragon

You are my Sunshine, Even in the Rain

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved the rain. Growing up in Mesa, Arizona, we had dry weather much of the year. When Monsoon season started, though, there was nothing I wanted to do more than sit on the front patio with my daddy, enjoying the lightening, thunder, and rain. I love the smell. I love the moisture it brings. I love that it waters the plants that are a vital part of our existence. I love that rain washes away the pollution, dirt, and grime and makes everything new again. I love the rain. 

The sun always breaks forth through the
darkness (unedited)

One of my favorite memories is going along the curbside and finding the worms. They seemed to magically appear every time it would rain. It was as if they, too, wanted to celebrate the newness of the earth. In the summer, I would put on my swimming suit (if I ever changed out of it in the first place, since I was an avid swimmer), and play in the rain with my friends. It was such a refreshing treat after so many days of 110+ degrees (F). When monsoon came, the world was made perfect again. 

The past couple of weeks, we have had a lot of rainfall at our home, which we are extremely grateful. Nearby are many farms that desperately need to be watered. Since the mountainous snow levels were very low this year, the rain is heaven sent. 

Coming home from visiting a friend, I noticed the many puddles waiting to be utilized. The rain had just stopped, the sun was starting to peak out, and it was the perfect temperature to take a walk. Upon entering our home, I invited my daughter (now 8) to come on a walk with me. I told her, "I need to walk around the neighborhood and take items back to some people. Would you like to come and go puddle jumping with me along the way?" My daughter, ever the adventurous, outdoor spirit, ran to get ready: she just needed to find her flip flops. Hand in hand we set out to find puddles of goodness just waiting for us to jump into. 

It was not long before the flipflops came off her feet and we found a puddle. 

There was a gentleman (about age 30 and perhaps a young father) who was leaving a home where he had just serviced their lawn. Acting as if we were conducting everyday business, Missy B and I discovered a nice, large puddle in the middle of the street. We stood at the edge, held hands and loudly said, "One, two, three, JUMP!" In we went. It was a GREAT splash! The man had stopped what he was doing to observe. As our pants were covered in water up to our knees, Missy B and I laughed aloud, smiled and nodded at the man, then went on our merrily way. His return grin was huge and full of joy. I hope that memory leaves an impression with him to take time and make memories with your children. It is one of Life's greatest gifts! 

I loved watching her jump in, get wet, and laugh as we walked on to find the next puddle awaiting our presence. I finally stopped jumping in to take some pictures of her. I have learned that photos are also one of Life's most precious gifts. 

After darkness always comes the light. It is always there if you just look for it. While others were dismal at rain coming night and day for quite some time, we chose to found the sunshine among the rain. 

The look on her face when she would splash, the beauty that surrounded us, the birds chirping, the sun shining- we made an ordinary walk an extraordinary experience. How grateful we are for the rain!

You do not have to just see butterflies or flowers to find beauty in this world. Just look at the world through the eyes of a child and it is a wonderful place to be. 

Making memories-
Mama Dragon

Dimes From Heaven

I am a firm believer of heaven, angels, and signs from heaven. I know that angels work in ways we sometimes are a little slow to understand. Sometimes it comes in the form of a whisper on the wind, or a song that comes on the radio. Sometimes, their messages come from a treasure on the ground. 

Lately, my husband has been finding dimes everyday. He will be getting out of the car or walking down the sidewalk and there they are. No pennies, nor nickels or quarters- just dimes. I told him it was a sign from heaven. To make sure I was remembering the belief correctly, I did some research. I found this article to be very helpful. 

Don't underestimate having a penny or dime appear before you. They are your guardian angels letting you know they are aware of you. Perhaps they are trying to tell you something great it going to happen. Today, something great did happen for our family and I know it was guided by the heavens. I am grateful for the treasures of heaven that we discover each day, as long as we are aware. 

Rejoicing in Heaven- 

Mama Dragon

Choosing Light

Disclaimer: The beginning of this post is rather religious in nature. I invite you to read it, ponder on it, and choose light to flood your life. However if you do not want to read the religious part, feel free to skip the first paragraph. 

My personal belief is that before we were born, we lived in a heavenly home. In this place, as it tells in the scriptures, there was a great war in Heaven. 2/3 of the angels followed the path our Heavenly Father chose: for us to come to earth and follow Christ, who would atone for us, so that we could return Home one day. The other 1/3 became rebellious and chose to follow the leader of the darkness, better known as Satan. These 1/3 are the lost souls who chose to go against Father's wishes. These are they that persuade darkness to overtake light in our lives. Those of us here on earth are the 2/3 that chose to follow God, to be born, and to fight to return Home again. 

The fact is, regardless of what you believe happened before you were born, you were born into a mortal world and you do live here and now upon the earth. Each of us has a path to take. None of us will have it easy. Not one. Will you decide to take the difficulties of life, allowing them to turn you bitter and give into the darkness? Or will you allow those experiences to help you become a better person? As a wise friend once asked me: Will you let this make you or break you? What will you choose to do with the time you have? 

Dear friends, I say to you, I beg of you: Choose light. I have walked the road of darkness and it is somewhere I never desire to return again. Let go of the anger and bitterness before it destroys you. Do not let the darkness overcome, but allow the light to flood your soul. Light comes from sunshine (literally), music with uplifting words and melodies, positive quotes, good friends, eating great foods, exercise, and of course, service. Besides turning everything over to God, the greatest key for basking in the light is to serve others. I am a mama dragon, fighting to protect my lair. I will do whatever it takes to keep the darkness away. For me, I choose to serve. 

Darkness cannot prevail where light reigns. 

If you or someone you know is struggling with darkness, please talk to someone- anyone! There are numbers to call for those who feel completely lost. Call someone. Reach out to someone. Fight for your life!! You only get one! Whatever you do, choose light!

Choosing Light- 

Mama Dragon

BANACHOS!!

Me with my Superhero,
Paul Cardall

In June 2013, I was diagnosed with a rare heart condition called ARVD. During the summer, I was on strict bed rest as I awaited my pending heart surgery. Day in and day out as I had nothing else to do but read books by Jason Wright and Paul Cardall (fellow heart warrior and composer) and watch "Little House on the Prairie" I tried to mix things up a bit. I loved to cook so I researched some recipes I could try on my good days. 

One day, I had a sudden craving for nachos; yet, I wanted something sweet as well. How could I mix these two great items of goodness, I wondered. We had no chips, nor did I have the strength to make cheese sauce. However, we did have bananas and pecans. Inspired by my husband's campfire stories, I began to brainstorm. Hmmm.... This could be amazing, I thought. Against doctors orders, I dragged myself out of bed and began to create. 

First, I sliced bananas onto my plate.

Wondering what could go better with bananas than chocolate, I added some chocolate chips onto them as well. 

Wanting a little more flavor in the mix, I added a small handful of mini marshmallows and melted it all for 30 seconds in the microwave. (For this picture, I used marshmallow cream, as we were out of marshmallows. It spreads just fine after melting it.) 

Then, for the crunch, I originally added a handful of pecans, although for this picture I used sliced almonds. 

It was the perfect blend of sweet, salty, and creamy. I have since then used walnuts and sliced almonds as well. All are divine. 

Sometimes, you just need to follow your heart (pun intended) and free the Divine creativity that may be locked up inside you. For me, allowing myself to create Banachos was worth the 5 minutes I was out of bed. (They kind of make me want to put on a sombrero, grab some castanets, and yell: BANACHOS!!) To this day, it is one of my favorite sweet snacks. When we unlock our potential, we are given opportunities to share our light from within. 

Creating freely- 

Mama Dragon

Habitual Learning

Over the years, I have heard and read (from various sources) that it takes 21 days to form a new habit. How about breaking one? Haha! Usually, I have a week's worth of blog posts written and timed to post automatically. This past week's events have not allowed for me to write, so the past two days I did not post. I almost felt guilty, but then what would be the point about sharing living guilt free if I did that? Life happens and sometimes we just do not have time to blog. Will that be a deal breaker for me sharing posts everyday? No. I choose to keep writing. Sometimes, we miss a day of our habits. It's does not mean we have to quit or start over, It just means we get back on track and continue forward.

From an early age, my husband and I work hard to teach our children the value of caring for their personal items. As early as they can crawl, we teach them how to pick up their toys and put their books away. When they are about 3 years of age, we teach them how to periodically sort through their belongings and to the "keep, toss, sell, donate" method to deep clean their room. By the time they are 7 years of age, getting rid of items is mastered as well as going to the bathroom when needed.

When my daughter was five years of age, she wanted a watch. Wanting to give her the opportunity to earn this desired item, we talked to her about the tidiness of her room, which seemed to have no hope. Upon a friend's suggestion, I placed a calender on her wall and each day that she picked up her room, she would mark the calender. When she had a full month filled, she earned her watch. This proved to be a great method as she not only earned her watch, but learned the value of taking care of her personal belongings. Although it took a few months to finally earn the watch, it only took one solid month of trying to establish this habit. (Sometimes, we need to review those teachings and reinforce them as they get older. Now would be a good time as she is 8 and this morning her room is....not so tidy.)

Developing a habit does not have to take a lot of time from your day. It can be simple as saying a prayer in the morning, to meditating for 5 minutes, hugging your kids each day... the list goes on and on. Choose a habit you want to create. Write it on your calender, program it into your phone... whatever you need to do in order to do it! Try it for 21 days and see what happens. If you skip a day, keep going! Don't give up just because it has not developed yet. You can do this! It is a learning process- a time for growing, stretching, and learning. 

What habit do you want to work on? I am working on personal scripture study. I will let you know how it goes. 

Ever Improving-
Mama Dragon